Mary Monica Wallace
Chance Harbour, NS - Like many mothers, Mary Monica Wallace (nee Feron) would always wave goodbye to us at the door. After a full and spirited life, Mary has passed away at age 90. This is our fond and final farewell to her.
Mary Wallace of Chance Harbour, Pictou County, Nova Scotia, passed away in Moncton, New Brunswick, on September 18, 2015.
As the matriarch of our family she was a woman of great faith, a dedicated wife and mother of ten, a community advocate, a sports enthusiast and a caring, compassionate friend. Her charm, humour and endlessly giving nature will be missed.
Mary was born in Montreal on November 1, 1924 and was the eldest child of Austin and Mona (Ryan) Feron. Mary moved with her family to Halifax at age 5. Growing up in Halifax she often commented on how grateful she was for her childhood. Mary enjoyed summers at the Waegwoltic Club and dances at St. Mary’s Boat Club. She graduated from both the Sacred Heart Convent and secretarial college in Toronto and was later employed as a court stenographer in Halifax. Her dear friend Betty Wallace welcomed Mary into the Wallace home where she spent many hours among the 15 Wallace children, one of whom would become her future husband Neil. During World War II, Mary volunteered with the Red Cross while Neil served overseas with the RCAF and then returned home to complete an engineering degree at TUNS. Mary and Neil were married on June 2, 1947.
In later years Mary noted that she was born between two world wars with her father serving in the first and her husband in the second. Squeezed in between was the Great Depression. She stated that living through these periods taught her not to waste time, money or food and she was left with a deeper love and appreciation for life, family, friends and country and a stronger faith in God. These values were her cornerstone.
Mary and Neil lived in Dominion and Glace Bay, NS; and Windsor, ON but most of their married life was spent in New Glasgow, NS. As parents to ten children they faced their share of sadness. Tom, their third child, died at age 4 and Peter, their ninth child, passed away at age 36. The growing up years in the Wallace home were full and happy, buzzing with school, sports and 33 meals a day with no automatic dishwasher!
In 1982, Mary and Neil moved from New Glasgow to Chance Harbour and were the first year round residents in the Chance Harbour cottage community. Neil died suddenly in 1983 at age 60. Thereafter, Mary embraced Chance Harbour and the beach as her permanent home.
Mary was active in the community and an advocate for those less fortunate: she was an organizer of the Head Start Preschool Program in the 1970s, Chair of the Pictou County Mental Health Advisory Board, and Board member of Summer Street Industries. She was also a member of the Town of New Glasgow School Board and member and Past President of the Gyrette Club of New Glasgow. Mary was a pioneer of the Pictou County environmental movement as a founding member of Citizens Against Pollution (CAP).
Mary was a sports fan both as an observer and a participant and could be relied on to brief her husband Neil on what was happening in the world of professional sport prior to his trip to the barber. She enjoyed skating, skiing, biking and gardening throughout her lifetime. She was a formidable tennis player and continued playing into her 80s. She had a lifelong affinity for bridge and Scrabble and always enjoyed a competitive game.
Mary was a longtime member of St. John the Baptist Parish in New Glasgow and the CWL. In later years she was a member of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Pictou Landing. She lived by the golden rule. Mary would pray daily for her family, relatives, friends and other people in need. She spent many hours visiting those who were sick or in care.
Mary had an eight-year journey with Alzheimer’s disease which she accepted with courage, grace and wit. She had remarkable insight into her condition and was an active member of her care team. Throughout these years, she was happy and proud to return each summer to her beachfront home in Chance Harbour where she was the focal point of an annual family reunion.
Mary is survived by eight children: David (Joan), New Glasgow; Janet, Los Angeles; Coleen (Ian) Ross, Deep Cove, BC; Michael (Arlene Pales), New Glasgow; Paul, Medicine Hat, Alberta; Carol (Paul) Connor, Halifax; Chris (Paulette), Moncton and Margot (Kevin) Cameron, Halifax.
Mary, also known as Granny or Scotia Nanny, was a proud grandmother and mentor to fifteen grandchildren: Tom Wallace (Anise Barton), Kamloops, BC; Sarah Wallace (Patrick Reid), Vancouver, BC; Daniel Wallace (Hilary), Halifax; Margot Ross, Los Angeles; Shannon Ross, Vancouver, BC; Neil Ross (Sarah Lebrecque), Calgary, AB; Susan Wallace, Pictou; Hannah Wallace, Halifax; Victoria Connor, Halifax; Brendan Wallace (Megan Richards), Ottawa, ON; Colin Wallace, Waterloo, ON; Monica Wallace, Moncton, NB; Brittany Cameron, Spencer Cameron and Riley Cameron, Halifax.
Mary was just getting to know and delighted in the presence of her six great grandchildren: Xavier and Feron Wallace of Kamloops; Gabrielle and Cameron Reid of Vancouver; and Caroline and Eloise Wallace of Halifax.
Mary is survived by her sister, Lucille, Sisters of Charity, Halifax; her brother, Donald (Bud) Feron (Linda), of Dartmouth; sisters-in-law Eleanor Wallace Culver, Nanaimo, BC; and Ruth Wallace Graham of Halifax.
She was predeceased by her parents, her husband Neil (1983), her sons Tom (1954) and Peter (1995), her great granddaughter, Sydney Reid (2010), her brothers Gordon (2012) and Peter (2014), and sister-in-law Solange (2011).
Visitation will take place at the R.H. Porter Funeral Home, New Glasgow, on Friday October 9 from 2-5 p.m. and 7- 9 p.m. Funeral mass will be held at St. John the Baptist Church, New Glasgow, on Saturday, October 10 at 11 a.m. Reception to follow in the Parish Hall.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Canadian Mental Health Association, 63 King Street, Dartmouth, NS, B2Y 2R7, online at www.novascotia.cmha.ca and/or Summer Street Industries, 72 Park Street, New Glasgow, NS, B2H 5B8 or online at www.summerstreet.ns.ca/foundation. Condolences may be sent by visiting: www.rhporter.ca